The U.S. Department of Justice has charged a Chinese wind turbine firm and two of its employees, alleging the group stole trade secrets from an American supplier in an act of "attempted corporate homicide."

The Chinese company -- Sinovel -- is one of the country's largest producers of wind turbines. It is accused of encouraging an employee of U.S.-based AMSC to steal copyrighted source code from a computer in Wisconsin for use in its turbines.

"The fact that Sinovel has exported stolen American intellectual property from China back into the United States -- less than 40 miles from our global headquarters -- shows not only a blatant disrespect for intellectual property but a disregard for international trade law," AMSC CEO Daniel McGahn said in a statement.

PM3000, the software in question, helps regulate the flow of electricity from turbines to electrical grids. The theft resulted in a loss of $800 million for AMSC, according to the indictment handed up by a federal grand jury in Wisconsin. Some 500 AMSC employees have lost their jobs following Sinovel's "egregious and unlawful behavior," McGahn said.